Access ladder for combines



J. W. LUCAS ETAL 9 ACCESS LADDER FOR COMBINES Feb. 1, @1

Filed Feb. 18, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Q INVENT ORS. JOHN W/ZZ/AM LUCAS 69, )2 BY ROBE/Q7 ASHTON &

l/V/LBE/ET DDIVALD WE El? {ILLM & 25M

A NORA/75.

Feb. 11, 1966 J. W. LUCAS ETAL ACCESS LADDER FOR GOMBINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 18, 1964 INVENTORS. JOH/V W/AZ/AM LUCAS 9055/97 ASHTON 5 BEE J13 BY W/L foo/mm Mali Z252 United States Patent M 3,232,376 ACCESS LADDER FOR COMBINES John William Lucas and Robert Ashton, Islington, 0n-

tario, and Wilbert Donald Weber, Nashville, Gntario, Canada, assignors to Canada Massey-Ferguson Limited, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, a corporation of Canada Filed Feb. 18, 1964, Ser. No. 345,656 6 Claims. (Cl. 182-97) The present invention relates generally to vehicle access ladders and concerns, more particularly, an operators platform ladder for agricultural combines.

Agricultural combines, and related vehicles, are normally operated from a platform located at the front of the vehicle and disposed well up in the vehicles frame so as to give the operator a good view of the crop cutting and feeding action of his machine. An excess ladder is therefore needed to enable the operator to climb to and from the elevated platform.

However, since a ladder suspended from the operators platform extends into close proximity to the ground where it may encounter crops or other obstructions alongside the vehicle, as well as to possibly interfere with the operating parts of the vehicle, provision must be made for either removing the ladder after the operator has boarded the platform, or for shifting the ladder to a storage position clear of any obstacles that may be encountered. One method previously employed is to mount the ladder in such a manner that it can be pivoted upwardly and rearwardly until it assumes a substantially horizontal .position projecting rearwardly and lying alongside the vehicle frame. In some cases, however, the vehicle frame, or implements carried thereby, project outwardly beyond the operators platform preventing the use of the latter type method of mounting.

The present invention lies in the provision of an access ladder rotatably suspended beneath the operators platform to permit the ladder to be rotated about a vertical axis from an operative position in which it extends downwardly from an access opening to the platform to an inoperative, storage position in which it is positioned clear of the operating parts of the combine and surrounding crops. For actuating the ladder between its operative and inoperative positions, an operating lever is pivotally mounted on the platform and moves to a position in which it extends across the access opening to complete a guard rail for the platform as the ladder is shifted from the operative position to its storage position.

The objects, advantages, and features of theinvention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a combine embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with the parts shown in alternate position;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, sectional detail view of the elevated platform and ladder;

FIGURES 4 and 5 are fragmentary sectional views taken, respectively, along lines 44 and 55 in FIG- URE 3; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary front elevation of the combine as viewed along lines 66 of FIGURE 2.

While the invention will be described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it should be understood that we do not intend to limit the invention to the pre cise construction shown. On the contrary, we intend to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

3,232,376 Patented Feb. 1, 1966 With reference to FIGURES 1 and 2, a portion of a combine is designated generally by reference numeral 19 and includes a frame or body 11 supported by a plurality of ground engaging wheels, of which only a front drive wheel 12 appears in the drawing. Mounted at the forward end of the combine (toward the left as viewed in F165. 1 and 2) is a header assembly 13 including an elevator housing 14.

To give the combine operator a clear view of the crop cutting and feeding action of the machine, the combine it) is provided with an operators platform 20 located at the top front of body 11 above the level of drive wheel 12. Platform 2% carries an operators seat 21 and a control column 22 on which is mounted a steering wheel 23 for the combine. Because of the elevated and forward position of the platform 20, the operator is provided with an unobstructed view down and forward of the machine.

For safety, platform 20 is partially surrounded by a portion of body 11 as well as a guard rail 26 having vertical, turned down portions 27 and 28 spaced to define an access opening 29.

In accordance with the invention, a ladder 3% is suspended beneath platform 20 in such a manner that it can be rotated about a vertical axis between an operative position in which it extends downwardly from access opening 29 as shown in FIG. 1, and an inoperative position in which the ladder is stored beneath platform 20 forward of drive wheel 12, as shown in FIG. 2, so as to be out of the path of any obstruction that may be encountered alongside drive wheel 12.

Ladder 30 includes a sheet metal frame 31 which supports a plurality of steps 32 as well as a pair of vertical side rails 33 and 34 (FIGS. 3 and 4). Side rails 33 and 34 include inwardly extending, horizontal portions 35 and 36, respectively, at their upper ends defining a support arm for the ladder. Portions 35 and 36 are joined together at their ends and are secured by conventional means such as welding, to the outer wall of a cylindrical sleeve 37, which in turn is rotatably received on a cylindrical post 38. Post 38 is carried at one end of a support arm 40, the other end of which is mounted on a tubular beam 42 mounted between depending side walls of platform 20 underneath the horizontal floor of the platform.

With reference particularly to FIG. 5, sleeve member 37 is supported vertically by a bearing plate or disk 44 attached to post 33 by means of a fitting 46 which is formed with a threaded stem 48 extending through an aperture in disk 44. Bearing plate 44 is held in position on stem 43 by a conventional threaded nut 5t Fitting 46 is secured to the inner walls of post 33 by welding or other conventional means.

Mounted between a pair of bracket arms on member 42 is a hinge pin 54, and an actuating lever 58 is pivotally supported on pin 54. Lever 58 includes a lower arm member oil which is pivotally connected at its end with one end of a rod 62 which in turn is pivotally connected at its other end with an arm member 64 in the form of a plate welded to sleeve 37. Consequently, by pivoting actuating lever 53 in a counter-clockwise direction about the axis of pin 54 as shown in FIG. 3, sleeve member 37 is caused to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 4 to actuate ladder 30 from its operative, full line position of FIG. 3 to its inoperative position as indicated by phantom lines in FIG. 3.

Attached to sleeve member 37 adjacent its upper end is a segmental latching plate 66 formed with an upstanding peripheral flange having a pair of angularly spaced notches 68 and 70. Ladder 39 is restrained in either of its extreme positions by the cooperation of a foot pedal 72 having a tooth 73 thereon which can be selectively received in either of notches 68 and 70. Foot pedal 72 is pivotally supported on a pin 76 carried by bracket arms 74 extending from the end of support member 40. Foot pedal 72 projects through a suitable opening formed in the horizontal floor or deck of platform and is biased by a spring 78 in a direction to urge tooth 73 into engagement with notches 68 and 70 of plate 66. A pair of brackets 39 and 82 secured, respectively, to foot pedal 72 and the bottom side of the platform 20 supports the ends of spring 78. Thus by depressing foot pedal 72, tooth 73 is disengaged from the notches of plate member 66 permitting ladder to be rotated about the vertical axis of sleeve 37.

Referring again to FIGURE 1, the operator boards platform 20 with ladder 30 in its operative position and thereafter depresses foot pedal 72, and pivots actuating lever 53 in a counter-clockwise direction to shift ladder 30 to its storage position as shown in FIGURE 2. As the ladder moves to the inoperative position, actuating lever 58 moves to a position in which it extends across access opening 29 to complete a guard rail across the access opening. In the position shown in FIGURE 2, tooth 73 of foot pedal 72 is received in notch 68 of plate member 66 when the operator releases the foot pedal, and the ladder is firmly locked in position until released by the operator.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A vehicle having a main body supported on ground engaging wheels projecting laterally from the body; an elevated operators platform mounted on the body and projecting horizontally outwardly therefrom over one of said wheels; a guard rail on said platform having an access opening therein; a support arm having one end mounted beneath said platform for pivotal movement about a vertical axis and projecting horizontally from said vertical axis; and a ladder secured to said support arm at a point spaced from said vertical axis; said ladder being movable about said vertical axis between an operative position in which it extends downwardly from said access opening on the opposite side of said wheel from the body and an inoperative storage position in which it is displaced from the access opening and is disposed generally transverse to the direction of movement of said wheel.

2. The construction defined in claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the wheel projects outwardly beyond the ladder when the ladder is in its storage position.

3. The construction defined in claim 1 further including an operating member interconnected with the platform and ladder for actuating the ladder between its operative and inoperative positions, said operating member being movable from a position displaced from the access opening to a position extending across the access opening to define an access opening guard rail as it actuates the ladder from its operative to storage positions, respectively.

4. The construction defined in claim 3 further including latching means for selectively locking said ladder in its operative or storage positions.

5. The construction defined in claim 4 wherein said latching means comprises inter-engagable latching members on the platform and ladder, said platform latching member being accessible from the top of the platform for engaging and releasing the latching means.

6. In a vehicle having an elevated platform with a guard rail having an access opening therein, a cylindrical post supported beneath said platform, a cylindrical sleeve journalled on said post for rotation about a vertical axis, a ladder secured to said sleeve, an actuating lever mounted on said platform for pivotal movement between a position displaced from the access opening and a position extending across the access opening to define a guard rail, and means interconnecting said actuating lever with said sleeve for rotating the ladder from an operative position extending downwardly from the access opening when the lever is displaced from the access opening to an inoperative, storage position angularly displaced from the access opening when the actuating lever is in its position extending across said access opening, a latching plate extending from said sleeve having angularly spaced notches formed therein, and a foot pedal accessible from the top of said platform for selectively engaging one of said notches to lock said ladder and sleeve against rotation about said post.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 417,395 12/1889 Roeth -437 X 804,046 10/1905 Robinson 105447 X 1,140,641 5/ 1915 Weatherly. 2,566,401 9/1951 Bustin 18291 X 2,967,584 1/1961 Westerlund 18297 3,083,785 4/1963 Hyman 18289 HARRISON R. MOSELEY, Primary Examiner.

0 REINALDO P. MACHADO, Examiner. 

1. A VEHICLE HAVING A MAIN BODY SUPPORTED ON GROUND ENGAGING WHEELS PROJECTING LATERALLY FROM THE BODY; AN ELEVATED OPERATOR''S PLATFORM MOUNTED ON THE BODY AND PROJECTING HORIZONTALLY OUTWARDLY THEREFROM OVER ONE OF SAID WHEELS; A GUARD RAIL ON SAID PLATFORM HAVING AN ACCESS OPENING THEREIN; A SUPPORT ARM HAVING ONE END MOUNTED BENEATH SAID PLATFORM FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS AND PROJECTING HORIZONTALLY FROM SAID VERTICAL AXIS; AND A LADDER SECURED TO SAID SUPPORT ARM AT A POINT SPACED FROM SAID VERTICAL AXIS; SAID LADDER BEING MOVABLE ABOUT SAID VERTICAL AXIS; SAID LADDER OPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH IS EXTENDS DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID ACCESS OPENING ON OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID WHEEL FROM THE BODY AND AN INOPERATIVE STORAGE POSITION IN WHICH IT IS DISPLACED FROM THE ACCESS OPENING AND IS DISPOSED GENERALLY TRANSVERSE TO THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID WHEEL. 